Cooled development apparatus



June 16, 1931. w. G. THOMPSON ET AL 1,310,857

COOLED DEVELOPMENT APPARATUS Filed March 17, 1950 2 Sheets-Sheet llllllllllll "ll Illll June 16, 1931. w. a. THOMPSO-N ET AL I 1,810,857

COOLED DEVELOPMENT APPARATUS Filed March 17, 1930 2 Sheets-Sheet 23nventor8 attorney Patented June 16, 1931 UNITED I STATES PATENT, OFFICE'WIIJ'ORD G. THOMPSON AND JAMES E. JORDAN, OF EL PASO, TEXAS OQOLEI)DEVELOPMENT APPARATUS Application ill ed March 17, 1980. Serial No.486,586.

The present invention relates. to improvements in cooled developmentapparatus and has for an object to provide an improved developingapparatus for photographic work 6 of various kinds in which the washwater and fixing solution are maintained at a substantially constant lowtemperature as is found desirable for mostsatisfactory development work.

Another object of the invention is to provide an improved developingapparatus which is especially applicable to the X-ray photographs takenby dentists, and which require an accurate and high development in.order to faithfully ortray the condition of the roots of the teet etc.

A further object of the invention is to provide an improved photographicdevelo ing apparatus which Wlll be of general app ication and consist ofa compact device and organization of parts and of a simple andeconomical ,form, whereby a constant temperature may be maintained atall times at a minimum of expense.

With the foregoing and other objects in view, the invention will be morefully described hereinafter, and will be more particularly pointed outin the claims appended hereto.

In the drawings, wherein like symbols refer to like orv correspondingparts throughout the several views:

Figure 1 is a top plan view of an improved developing apparatusconstructed according to the present invention with the top coverremoved.

Figure 2 is a vertical section taken on line 11 open through the upperportion of the cabinet in any appropriate manner. Spaced inwardly fromthe side walls and bottom of I the tank 11 is a receptacle 12. Betweenthe walls 11 and -12 is filled cork or other insula tion 13. s

The receptacle 12 is also open at its top and adapted to be coveredby'theremovable lid 14. Such internal receptacle 12 is divided into anumber of compartments, shown most clearly in Figure 1, in which 15represents the wash water com artment, flanked on opposite sides by twofixing bath solution compartments 16 and 17, these vari- Gil ouscompartments being separated from one another by the partition walls 18and 19 which will extend substantially the full height of thereceptacle. There is also a coo in chamber or compartment 20 extending 0one end of the wash water compartment 15 and [separated therefrom by thetransverse partition wall 21 which extends between the longitudinalpartition walls 18 and 19.

In the compartment 20 are situated two coils 22 and 23, the coil 22being for the purpose of cooling the wash water which is supplied to thecompartment 15 by a pipe connection 24 extending from the lower endofthe coil 22 and through the bottom wall of the internal receptacle 12.As shown more particularly'in igure 3, the washwater is received fromthe city service pipe or other source through a pipe connection 25 ascontrolled by a valve 26 situated in said pipe 25. The pipe 25 connectswith the upper end of the coil 22.

Now withregard to the refrigerating coil 23, the same is connected in acompressor-expander circuit involving the compressor 27, driven by theelectric motor or other source of power 28, a condenser 29,.and theexpansion refrigeration coil. 23 above referred to. v

The compressor 27 connects with the upper portion of the coil by a pipe30, while the lower side of the coil 23 is connected with the condenser29 by a pipe 31 having therein an expansion valve or device 32.

There is a thermostat 33 or a thermostatically controlled switch for themotor 28 whereby a substantially constant temperature may be maintainedin the cooling compartment 20, which compartment is preferably filled toa desired level with water or some other liquid which will act as asuitable transfer medium between the coils 22 and 23. In the use of thedevice, the thermostat 33, which has connection to the bath in thefreezing tank 20, or one of the other tanks, will open and close thecircuit to the motor 28 accordingly as the temperature rises and fallsin the body of liquid maintained in compartment 20. A predetermined lowtemperature, say degrees F., is selected and the thermostat 33 is setfor this temperature; whereby, on a rise in temperature above theselected temperature of 65 degrees F, the circuit will be closed throughthe motor 28, and the apparatus will thereby be put in operation. Assoon as the temperature reaches that selected, the motor circuit will beinterrupted, and the activity of the refrigerating apparatus suspendeduntil such time as the temperature again rises beyond the selecteddegree.

Such automatic action will maintain the fluid in the refrigerating tank20 at a constant low temperature. Cooling will thus be communicated tothe in-coming water which is circulated through the coil 22 before beingdelivered to the wash water compartment 15. By radiation, the side tanks16 and 17 for the fixing baths will be kept cool.

The li-ray-dental pictures, or other photographs, having been taken, thelid 14- is removed and the negatives immersed in the solution and washwater baths, after which they are removed and placed to dry.

The water in the wash water compartment may be maintained at a constantlevel by the use of an overflow pipe 34 which extends up within thecompartment 15 and has its open upper end disposed in the upper portionof the compartment.

It will be noted that all of the compartments or tanks are exposedthrough the up per part of the cabinet and that the arrangement is suchthat all connections are made through the bottom of the cabinet and thatthe lower portion of the cabinet is utilized.

to contain the refrigerating unit.

It is obvlous that various changes and modifications may be made in thedetails of construction and design of the above specifically I describedembodiment of this invention without departing from the spirit thereof,such changes and modifications being restricted only by the scope of thefollowing claims.

What is claimed is 1. In a developing apparatus, a, cabinet, a

. tank in the upper portion of the cabinet exposed through the upperportion of said cabinet, a receptacle within and spaced from the bottomand sides of the tank and having intersectin partitions dividing theinterior space 0 the receptacle into a plurality of compartments allopening substantially through the upper part of the cabinet, arefrigerating coil in one of the compartments, 0. refrigerating unitcontained in the lower portion of the cabinet and connected to saidcoil, a cooling coil in said compartment con necting with the source ofwash water supply and with an adjacent compartment for wash

